His saying, exalted and glorified is He:

﴿And when a group of them said, 'O people of Yathrib, there is no place for you, so return.' And a party of them seeks permission from the Prophet, saying, 'Indeed, our homes are exposed,' while they are not exposed. They only intend to flee.﴾

﴿And if they had entered upon them from its sides, then they would have been asked for the fitnah, they would have certainly done it, and they would not have remained in it except for a little.﴾

﴿And they had already pledged to Allah before that not to turn their backs. And the covenant of Allah is to be questioned.﴾

This statement is narrated to have been said by Banu Harithah, and their homes are at the borders of the city. And Muqatil said: Banu Salamah. It is said that the one who said this was Abdullah ibn Ubayy ibn Salul and his companions. And Al-Silmi, Hafs, Al-Yamani, and Al-A'raj read: 'There is no place' with a Dhammah on the meem, meaning: there is no place to stand, and this is the reading of Abu Ja'far, Shaibah, Abu Rajaa, Al-Hasan, Qatadah, Al-Nakha'i, Abdullah ibn Muslim, and Talhah. The meaning is in the heat of battle and the place of resistance.

﴿ 'So return'﴾ means: to your homes and houses. This was meant to dishearten the Messenger of Allah, blessings and peace be upon him.

And the group seeking permission, it is narrated that Aws ibn Qizhi sought permission in that matter on behalf of his tribe, saying: 'Indeed, our homes are exposed,' meaning: uncovered to the enemy. It is said: he meant: empty for thieves. It is said: an 'awra' home is one that is uncovered, and from it is the saying of the poet:

'We have the first hardship when the horn is exposed.'

Ibn Abbas, may Allah be pleased with him, said: The group is Banu Harithah, and they had pledged to Allah after Uhud not to turn their backs. And Ibn Abbas, Ibn Yamr, Qatadah, and Abu Rajaa read: 'exposed' with a kasrah on the waw in both instances, and it is a participle. Abu Al-Fath said: 'The correctness of the waw in this is rare, because it is preceded by a fathah.' The majority read: ﴿ 'exposed'﴾ with a sukoon on the waw, considering it a noun described by it. And the inhabited house is the one that is isolated and exposed to anyone who wishes it harm. So Allah informed that their homes are not as they mentioned, and that their intention is to flee, and that what they displayed of wanting to protect their homes, especially their souls, is not so, and that they truly dislike the victory of the Messenger of Allah, blessings and peace be upon him, and they want his disgrace and for him to be defeated.

And if the city had been entered from its corners, and the real fear had intensified, then they would have been asked about the fitnah and the war for Muhammad, blessings and peace be upon him, and his companions, may Allah be pleased with them. They would have rushed to it and come to it, responding in it, and they would not have delayed in their homes to preserve it except for a little, it was said: as much as they take their weapons. Al-Hasan al-Basri read: 'Then they were asked about the fitnah' without hamzah, and it is from the root of 'sala' as 'khafa' is from 'yukhaf', a dialect in 'sa'ala' where the root has a waw. Abu Zayd narrated: 'They are equal in asking', and it was narrated from Al-Hasan: 'Ask about the fitnah', and Mujahid read: 'They were asked' with elongation. Ibn Kathir, Nafi', and Ibn Amer read: 'They would come to it' meaning they would arrive at it, and Asim and Abu Amr read: 'They would give it from themselves', which is the reading of Hamzah and Al-Kisai, so it is as if it is a response to the question and similar to it. Al-Sha'bi said: And the Prophet, blessings and peace be upon him, read it with elongation.

Then Allah, Blessed and Exalted, informed about them that they had indeed pledged not to flee, and it was narrated from Yazid ibn Ruman that this refers to Banu Harithah.

Qadi Abu Muhammad, may Allah have mercy on him, said: They, along with Banu Salamah, were the two groups that were inclined to failure on the day of Uhud, then they repented and pledged not to flee, but on the day of the trench, some from Banu Harithah fled.

And in His saying, Blessed and Exalted: 'And the covenant of Allah is to be questioned' is a warning. And 'the corners' refers to the regions, and its singular is qutr and qatr, and the pronoun in it can refer to the city or to the homes.